Sunday, May 30, 2010

Not even 24 hours after making the final out of Roy Halladay's perfect game, Ronny Paulino drove in the only run today to lift the Florida Marlins to a 1-0 victory over the struggling Philadelphia Phillies.

Paulino's sixth-inning single drove in Hanley Ramirez and made a winner of Anibal Sanchez (5-2), who gave up three hits and struck out seven in six 2-3 innings. Leo Nunez pitched a perfect ninth for his 10th save in 12 tries as Florida ended a four-game losing streak.

Jamie Moyer (5-5) gave up one run and four hits in six innings, failing in a bid to join Phil Niekro and Jack Quinn as the only pitchers to win 100 games after turning 40.

He was good -- but not perfect, like Halladay was Saturday night when he became the 20th person to pitch a perfect game in baseball history.

And the Phillies' offense these days is anything but perfect, the sputter now entering a second week.

For the weekend, the Phillies outscored the Marlins 4-3. According to STATS LLC, it was the first time since April 2009 that teams combined to score seven or fewer runs in a three-game set; the Giants and Diamondbacks played three-straight 2-0 games, San Francisco winning two, last April 17-19.

Philadelphia took two of three over the weekend against the Marlins, despite getting only four runs in the series. The power-packed Philly lineup has hit a mere .186 since May 22 and has now gone a season-worst 54 innings -- and counting -- without a home run.

Jayson Werth went 0 for 4 for the Phillies, striking out all four times, the eighth time in his career that's happened. He went down swinging on his first three trips then got caught looking with two runners on against Clay Hensley in the eighth.

The two-time defending NL champions arrived in Florida on Friday having just been shut out for an entire three-game series against the New York Mets.

The Phillies had gone scoreless in 49 of 50 innings before finally breaking through in the fourth against the Marlins on Friday night. And after single runs in the fourth, fifth and seventh to win that game 3-2, the NL East leaders have managed just one run in their last 20 innings -- the unearned one that was all Halladay needed on Saturday night.

Dario Franchitti was finally first after 500 miles in the Indianapolis 500, even though he was already an Indy 500 champion in 2007.

Franchitti's victory three years ago came in a race shortened by rain and flagged after 166 laps.

There was no chance of rain today at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Franchitti drove a flawless race, dominating by leading most of the race before having to conserve fuel to make it to the finish.

The race ended with a spectacular crash between Ryan Hunter-Reay and Mike Conway in the north chute between Turns 3 and 4 on the final lap. Conway's car went airborne and ripped into the fence before landing upside-down on the race track in one of the most spectacular crashes in recent Indy 500 history.

Conway was able to get out of the car and wave to the crowd of over 300,000 fans afterward.

Meanwhile, Franchitti was able to celebrate his second Indy 500 win in victory lane.

"The milk tastes just as good the second time around here," Franchitti said. "I just needed to know what the other guys were doing with fuel. There was a gap behind them and a lot of confusion. This means so much after coming back when I went away for a year in 2008 and to come back win a championship and win the Indianapolis 500."

Dan Wheldon finished second for Panther Racing for the second year in a row.

IndyCar officials changed the order of finish, moving Marco Andretti from sixth to third place.

Alex Lloyd moved down one spot to fourth. Scott Dixon moves from fourth to fifth, and Danica Patrick drops from fifth to sixth.

The top two places did not change.

The decision comes more than two hours after the race ended. Video review showed three cars passed Andretti after the caution flag came out on Lap 199.

Dale Coyne, who owns Lloyd's car, said his team would not protest the revised finish order.Officials also flipped the order of 13th and 14th. Mario Romancini moves up one spot to 13th, while Simona de Silvestro falls to 14th.

Patrick started 23rd. She drove underneath Conway's car while it was airborne.

"I knew the strength of the team would be in the race," Patrick said. "I had faith in that. The pit stops were great. It was a little tough to pass but between pit stops and strategy it was a great race. I hope Mike Conway is not hurt. That could just as easily be me one of these times.

"It's been an exciting month. I'm a little relieved."

John Andretti was 30th. He crashed on the 62nd lap after being blackflagged.

If Mike Lawryk needed a better marketing tool to promote his Vertical Assault pole vaulting club out of Allen Township, he would be hard-pressed to top what his club members did at the PIAA Track and Field Championships over the weekend.

Class AAA boys winner Adam Phillippi of Saucon Valley, Class AA champ Lanny Buck of Palmerton and Class AA girls record-setter Allison Vanek of Wilson are all Vertical Assault members. On top of that, Lauren Terstappen of Phoenixville is also part of the considerable Vertical Assault stable.

"I can retire now," said Lawryk after Phillippi, the biggest surprise of the four winners, cleared 15 feet on his first attempt to win the AAA boys title. "I never would have believed this."

Lawryk was only kidding. He's not going to retire. We can only imagine how many potential vaulters will be contacting him to join in the Vertical Assault success.

Kowan Scott of Wilson had a spectacular PIAA meet, winning the Class AAA boys 300-meter intermediates title and finishing second to nationally ranked Don Pollitt of Hazleton in the 110 highs. Yet, Scott admitted he felt badly about Liberty's Stephen Lewis, the Pennsylvania state 60-meter hurdles indoor champion who would have been a major player in the high hurdles.

Lewis was declared academically ineligible prior to the Lehigh Valley Conference Championships and missed the entire postseason. Lewis had a scholarship offer pending from the University of Nebraska, which was only waiting for his academic issues to get settled. Now that's all down the drain, a sad ending to one of the most impressive athletes I've seen in this region.

Alyssa Lombardo's state-record performance while winning a second-straight Class AA girls 400-meter title in dramatic fashion was clearly one of the lynchpin moments from the Lehigh Valley perspective in the PIAA meet. It also once again put the controversial dual-sport practice clearly in focus, a sore issue for a lot of coaches who are caught in the two-sport taffy pull. Saucon Valley's Lombardo is also a two-time first-team Colonial League all-star selection as an outfielder who some project as a NCAA Division I prospect in that sport.

But she would be a clear Division I recruit as a sprinter in track and her 54.65 clocking in the 400 projects as a legitimate time in any of the major conferences, whether we're talking Big East, SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 or PAC 10.

Lombardo also raised some eyebrows by opting out of Saucon Valley's 3,200 relay at the state meet where the Panthers, who eventually finished third, would have been a clear threat to Lewisburg's gold medal in Saturday's final had Lombardo run anchor as she did in the District 11 meet.

Don’t forget the annual Memorial Day Parade and ceremony in Nazareth on Monday.

The parade begins at 10:00 a.m. in the Circle, proceeds south on Main Street to Prospect, Broad, Belvidere/Mauch Chunk with a stop at the American Legion, then Church Street to Council Chambers for the Ceremony.

A few teams in softball, baseball, volleyball, lacrosse and soccer are still left.

But by and large, Memorial Day weekend signifies the end of another high school sports season.

2009-2010 was another outstanding year for Lehigh Valley athletics. We've probably had better years and certainly have had years with more state titles, but there were still plenty of terrific performances individually and by teams.

However, there are dark clouds looming on the high school sports horizon.

I've talked to a lot of coaches and a lot of athletic directors and they are worried about the future of the high school sports scene. What is going on in Easton with the cutting of programs is just the tip of the iceberg and tough decisions are coming everywhere.

Here are some things that concern me, and many others, as we look to the future of Lehigh Valley high school athletics.

1. Dwindling attendance. Less and less people are coming out to the games. More and more, the truth is if you don't have a son, daughter, niece or nephew, grandson or granddaughter playing, you don't go to the games. The days of going to games to support your alma mater or your town's team are long gone. And if you care about them and they're doing well in a marquee sport, you are probably content to stay home and watch your favorite team on TV. Revenues were way down at the state basketball finals at State College again. Lots of reasons for that, but one is that private and charter schools are dominating and they don't have the widespread appeal of schools from one specific town.

2. Athletes are still moving around too much. The biggest joke in high school athletics is the rule that states you can't transfer for athletic reasons. My estimation is that 95 percent of all transfers involving athletes are made at least, in part, for athletic reasons. And yet, most of these transfers happen without challenge from the schools involved. Proof is difficult to come by because the lies are so compelling. And everybody is afraid of lawsuits. So, unless you can impose an automatic rule -- like maybe anybody who transfers after he or she begins 9th grade must sit out 50 percent of his season's games -- you might as well take the rule off the books and allow complete free agency and movement.

3. More emphasis is on travel teams, and other non-high school related teams. Baseball is the latest sport where travel teams are becoming common. Kids don't want to play on their local legion teams anymore. They would rather play on all-star teams with kids from all over the place. Some don't see this as a negative and would argue that travel teams offer the best chance for kids to improve as individuals and get more exposure to college coaches. That very well may be, but the rise in popularity of these teams in all sports are taking away from the cohesion of the high school programs.

4. If you're not starting, you're not happy. Coaches are feeling more and more pressure from parents, who are spending a lot of money on camps and the aforementioned travel teams with the expectation that they are buying their kids playing time on their high school teams. When their dollars don't translate into playing time, the parents and kids get upset. Especially the parents. No one wants to be reserves or role players any more. Everybody wants to start and play their positions they were groomed -- often by their own parents -- to play.

5. School boards listening to meddling parents and using their influence. We've lost a bunch of quality coaches over the years because disgruntled parents got to school board members who were more eager to get re-elected than do the right thing.

6. Coaches expecting their kids to be committed to them all year long. The tug-of-war that exists between coaches over multi-sport kids continues to be a major problem and causes rifts among the coaches, the kids, and even teachers. Too many kids are put in a bind about what they should be doing and who they should be pleasing. If it's out of season, coaches can't expect kids to be there for everything. And it would be a good idea of they just let the kids alone for at least a brief period of time, like a month.

7. Coaches need to push academics more. Some, if not most, do a great job, but others put wins and championships ahead of doing what's right and that's making sure kids are getting things done academically. There are still those out there who think athletic scholarships fall from the trees, but they don't happen without strong academic credentials. The classroom needs to be emphasized as much as hitting fastballs in baseball and softball, hitting holes in football and hitting foul shots in basketball.

8. Schools need to get more creative. When the East Penn Conference broke up, the five schools that were left did a lot of creatitive things to fill out their schedules. They had to because they had just four other league members and lots of open dates to fill on their schedules. You saw some unique tournaments and challenges that brought in schools from outside the area. I don't see the same creativity from ADs these days. Instead, it's too easy to merely arrange nonleague dates with other teams in the league even when most coaches and kids crave outside competition. Some would say ADs and principals should also get more creative with their coaching choices and give young, unproven guys and girls more opportunities rather than just recycling coaches who have had success in the past.

9. Where's the money going to come from? Feeder systems are being gutted and you wonder when programs in their entirety will be sliced. You hope it doesn't happen, but more and more cuts are coming and new revenue sources may have to be explored like sponsorships or pay-to-play policies. It's clear that the money isn't going to come from great attendance because the interest just isn't there as it was in most sports five, 10, or especially, 20 years ago.

10. Being on a high school sports team isn't as important as it once was. When I was a high school student, I would have given away my most prized possessions just to make the high school basketball team. I would have loved just to make the roster, get a uniform and get to run out of the locker room for the layup drill. I actually did get to experience it just last year as a member of the Washington Generals against the Globetrotters, but oh how I wished I could have experienced that at Dieruff in the late 70s. But I wasn't big enough or good enough to make it on the team back then.

In this era, I don't think the kids feel the same sense of pride when it comes to making their high school teams. Some do. I don't want to taint everybody. But we live in a "It's all about me" era. Kids don't play high school sports because it's a source of community pride to represent their school. They play high school sports, primarily because they think it could lead to a college or pro career. Sitting the bench doesn't accomplish that. And we see more and more kids unhappy, and if they're unhappy, you can only imagine how distraught their parents are. And that leads to transfer talk and pressure on coaches and some of the other negatives on this list.

I am told that teachers face the same problems as coaches in the classroom. If things don't go well, it's the teacher and no the student that are held accountable.

I do wonder where we will be five, 10, 20 years, from now. If high school sports are still around in 2030, I wonder what they will look like. I have a feeling that they won't look nearly the same.

I see plenty of erosion on a variety of levels, including the amount of coverage newspapers, including this one, give the high school scene. We, too, face challenges in coping with declining interest and tightening economy.

Let's hope better times are coming, but my fear is that many of the things on this top 10 list will only get worse.

The Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce is busy planning many exciting events. Below is a list of upcoming events that we invite you, members of the general public to attend. Should you like attend, call the chamber at 610-759-9188 to make a reservation. Be sure to visit our web-site: www.nazarethchamber.com for additional updates!

June 4—Iron Pigs—PPL Picnic Patio Area – Tri-Chamber event $30 per person includes an all you can eat dinner buffet. Limited seating still availableJune 7—10th Annual Scholarship Golf Outing at Woodstone Country Club – call today to register to play. Sponsorships also available, prize donations also appreciatedJuly 17—Nazareth Day—Contact Sandy Bonisese @ Merchants Bank in Nazareth for table space at the circle or to make a donation to support the eventJuly 27—Iron Pigs—PenTeleData Area – Bi-Chamber event $35 per person includes all you can eat dinner buffet. Limited seating availableAugust 7th—3rd Annual MARTIN ON MAIN Festival. Vendors are still being accepted. Call to reserve your space todayAugust 18—Tri Chamber Clambake at Evergreen Lake in Bath. Lots of food, fun, entertainment with a live and silent auction featuring many great prizesSeptember 18—Community Yard Sale & Quarters for Military Families at Nazareth Borough Park. Vendor spaces are available for purchase. Call to reserve your spot today!September 30—3rd Annual Business 2 Business Expo at The Westgate Mall. Hosted by The Nazareth & Whitehall Area Chambers of Commerce and Discover Lehigh Valley. Great exposure for your businessDecember 2—Annual Nazareth Tree lighting Celebration

There are many benefits in being a chamber member. Call the office today (610-759-9188) to schedule an appointment or to have information mailed to you. By supporting a chamber member, you are also supporting your local community!

Tomas Kopecky scored the go-ahead goal in the third period and the Chicago Blackhawks won a wild and high-scoring Stanley Cup opener, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 6-5 tonight.

Kopecky, who had been a scratch the previous five playoff games and was in the lineup because of an injury to Andrew Ladd, scored from the left side with a sharp-angled shot that beat backup goalie Brian Boucher at 8:25 of the third.

Game 2 is Monday night at the United Center.

Danny Briere and Scott Hartnell had a goal and two assists apiece for the Flyers.

Chicago's Troy Brouwer scored two goals, the second putting the Blackhawks ahead 5-4 in the second period and prompting the Flyers to replace starter Michael Leighton with Boucher.Ville Leino, Blair Betts and Arron Asham also scored the Flyers.

Dave Bolland had a short-handed breakaway goal for the Blackhawks and Patrick Sharp and Kris Versteeg also scored for Chicago.

The Blackhawks are in their first final since 1992 and are aiming for the franchise's first championship since 1961. The Flyers, who last made the finals in 1997, are shooting for their first title since the Broad Street Bullies won the second of two straight championships in 1975.

The Flyers weren't too bullish tonight. They played the entire game without a penalty.

But as the Flyers make their surprising run through the Stanley Cup finals, there is perhaps no bigger hockey fan in the Lehigh Valley than Pawlowski -- and not because he's acquired an appreciation for the power play.

Pawlowski is planning what is expected to be an $80 million hockey arena on Allentown's riverfront and for him, Flyers mania means more season ticket sales, more people in his downtown and more excitement for a Flyers minor league affiliate team he hopes will drop the puck in Allentown for the 2012-13 season.

''Look at the way people are rushing out to buy Flyers jerseys and caps,'' Pawlowski said. ''It raises the excitement for hockey at a time when we're working to bring it here. It shows that the Phantoms will thrive here. It's awesome. The timing couldn't be better.''

The Pittsburgh-based Brooks Group, owners of the Flyers-affiliated Phantoms, are hoping a Stanley Cup hangover lasts a long time.

''It's Flyers mania and it's awesome,'' said Rob Brooks, whose team is playing in Glens Falls, N.Y. until the Allentown arena can be built.

Brooks Group has been looking for a new location for the team since its old home, the Spectrum in Philadelphia, was marked for demolition. They've chosen Allentown, and while the city's effort to prepare the Lehigh riverfront for the arena has gone slowly, a 130-acre special state taxing district has been created to fund the arena. The city and team owner say they hope to have the arena open in October 2012.

Pawlowski knows a little something about how success with the pro team can boost excitement for the minor league affiliate. Coca-Cola Park, home of the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs, opened in east Allentown in 2008. The Phillies promptly went to the World Series two consecutive years, winning in 2008. Today, IronPigs fans have made Coca-Cola Park the highest attendance stadium in the 14-team International League, selling more than 8,700 tickets per game for a stadium that has about 8,000 seats.

Some of that excitement has come from the fact that a healthy diet of Phillies stars, including All-Star lead-off man Shane Victorino, closer Brad Lidge and starting pitcher J.A. Happ have had stints with the Triple A team and are now household names.

Phantoms fans can expect a strong connection with the Flyers.

''Three-quarters of the Flyers lineup played for the Phantoms,'' Brooks said. ''That's pretty exciting. We can't wait to get to Allentown.''

But first things first and that means if they're going to cause a face-painting, jersey-buying craze here, Pawlowski and Brooks have to get the arena built. Pawlowski said officials from the city, the Brooks Group, developers and the Allentown Economic Development Corp. are negotiating a complicated deal that will spell out what obligations each party has. Making matters more difficult is that the taxing district -- which will pay for much of the $80 million arena by diverting all state tax money generated in the district for the next 30 years into paying off the arena debt -- has never been used before in Pennsylvania.

''This is a very complex deal. We're blazing a new trail here,'' Pawlowski said. ''It's not as easy as we thought so it's taking longer, but it's getting done. We're almost there.''

Pawlowski said he hopes to break ground for the new stadium this fall. But Sen. Pat Browne, R-Lehigh, who authored the taxing district law, said it could happen as late as next spring and the 18-month project still would be finished by fall of 2012.

Assuming Allentown accomplishes that feat, will what the Flyers are doing now put people in the Phantoms arena, and ultimately downtown?

Definitely, says Mike Reitbauer, 21 of Allentown. As he perused a rack of Flyers jerseys at Schuylkill Valley Sports in the South Mall, he admitted he's totally caught up in Flyers mania.

''I watched the last game against Montreal at Starters [Pub, Bethlehem] and the place was electric. The place was going crazy,'' said Reitbauer. ''I want that energy in my hometown. I can't wait to buy tickets.''

Joce Kaligis, of Whitehall, is a native of the Netherlands who admits he's really a St. Louis Blues fan but still can't take his eyes off the Flyers playoff run.

''I'm completely glued to this series. I just love ice hockey in general,'' said Kaligis, at a trading cards show at Merchants Square Mall. ''I've driven to Philadelphia to see games and I've been to Hershey, but it's just not convenient to do very often. I would be a huge Phantoms fan.''

Brooks gets all that. His family is part owner of the Pittsburgh Penguins, rivals of the Flyers, but he knows what a Stanley Cup could do for his effort to bring hockey to Allentown.

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Philadelphia Phillies ace Roy Halladay threw the 20th perfect game in major league history, delivering the marquee performance of his All-Star career in a 1-0 win over the Florida Marlins tonight.

It was the second perfect game in the majors this month, Dallas Braden doing it for Oakland against Tampa Bay on May 9. It's the first time in the modern era that there were a pair of perfectos in the same season -- Colorado's Ubaldo Jimenez threw a no-hitter, too, in April.

Halladay struck out 11, then got pinch-hitter Ronny Paulino to ground out to end it, and was cheered by a crowd of 25,086 throughout much of the night. While there were a couple of good plays behind him, Halladay didn't need any great defensive work in this gem.The 33-year-old righty was a veritable one-man show.

Always stoic on the mound, Halladay (7-3) broke into a big smile as his teammates rushed in to congratulate him.

Halladay has long been dominant, and the former AL Cy Young winner was the centerpiece of a multi-team trade that brought him from Toronto to the two-time NL champions in the offseason.

He was within one out of a no-hitter on Sept. 27, 1998, in just his second major league start, pitching for the Blue Jays against Detroit. Pinch-hitter Bobby Higginson ended that on the first pitch he saw, hitting a solo home run.

Halladay faced three Marlins pinch-hitters in the ninth. Mike Lamb led off with a long fly ball that was caught on the center-field warning track, Wes Helms struck out looking and Paulino hit a grounder that backup third baseman Juan Castro ranged to his left to get.

It was the Phillies' second perfect game, with Jim Bunning having thrown one in 1964.On the short list of baseball's perfect games, there are the first two: John Richmond and John Ward pitched them five days apart in 1880, two decades before what is considered the modern era.

Generally, the team that scores first in a lacrosse game gains momentum that, hopefully, will carry through the rest of the game. But at Emmaus' Memorial Field Friday, those early 1-0 advantages were just that, early advantages.

Emmaus scored first in the girls championship game against Nazareth, yet the Blue Eagles quickly got that goal back and had a 4-1 advantage before the Hornets could score again. Nazareth went on to win, 17-8, with Amanda Denger scoring six goals for the Blue Eagles.

In the boys game that followed, Emmaus saw Central Catholic go ahead three minutes into the game on a power play goal by Tyler Albanese. But like the script in the first game, the Hornets responded with three straight goals to take a 3-1 lead on their way to an 11-6 win. Danny Kinek paced the Hornets with three goals.

Both winning teams advance to play the fifth-place team from District 1 on Tuesday with the Blue Eagles at Emmaus and the Hornets at J. Birney Crum Stadium.

In the opening game, Colleen Ehrig scored first for No. 4 seed Emmaus 6:11 into the game. Just over a minute later, Denger responded for the top-seeded Blue Eagles to tie the score. Kathleen Bezik put the Eagles in front for good with her goal a minute later, and Lindsay Whipple gave the Eagles a 4-1 lead with two consecutive goals. Nazareth closed out the first half with a 6-3 lead.

Denger scored twice to open the second half before Ehrig scored again for Emmaus, making the score 8-4. Denger scored her fourth and fifth goals giving Nazareth a 10-4 lead.

''We were so nervous,'' Denger said. ''We were ridiculously nervous. Emmaus is a strong team and their defense is so strong. We could break down their offense and that's what won the game. We wanted to get the first goal. We were all like 'oh, no, we have to pick this up.'''

''We really wanted the first goal,'' Nazareth coach Jennifer Nolan said. ''Our goal is to get the first draw. That sets the tone of the game. the game of lacrosse is won by the draw.''

''They played very well,'' Emmaus coach Allison Moxey said. ''We told our girls that for us to win everyone would have to play their best. We were a little bit off in our transition. They're just a good team and played better than we did tonight.''

Tyler Albanese broke the ice for Central Catholic in the second game, but two goals by Danny Kinek gave the Hornets a 2-1 lead, and Will Scott's goal put them up 3-1. Matt Savage scored for the Vikings to keep them within 1 at the end of the first quarter. But Emmaus outscored the Vikings 3-1 in the secon d quarter to take a 6-3 lead at the half.

Central's game plan was to slow the game down, giving Emmaus fewer chances to score. This worked in the first half, as the Hornets only had 13 shots, but the Emmaus defense harassed the Vikings, despite allowing 15 shots.

''My defense did a good job keeping them out,'' Emmaus goalkeeper Joe Magargal said. ''They're all over the place and they keep me protected.''

Kinek led the Hornets with three goals and two assists. He also was knocked down and stayed down for a few minutes. ''I can't remember exactly what happened,'' he said. ''We can't always score first. We scored right back. They did some different defensive schemes on us that threw us off in the first half. They went from zone to man-to-man.''

''We really wanted to score first,'' Central coach Dan Dolphin said. ''We hoped we could take some momentum away from them. Once again, they're a good team and we knew they were going to come back. I'm real proud of the way my kids played. They never gave up. This is about as close as anybody's been to them''

Tad Klidonis said he was proudest of the fact that his teams went undefeated for four years.

Nazareth's Cassie Denger was hoping for the chance to play hero in Friday night's District 11 Class 3A championship game against Parkland.

When the opportunity came, Denger was shocked but ready.

''I was like, 'Oh my God, it's happening,''' the junior forward admitted. ''When I went to strike the ball, I just cleared my head.''

And she kicked the district title the Blue Eagles' way for the second time in three years.

Denger scored on a breakaway goal with 18:34 left in a 1-0 win over the Trojans at Whitehall's Zephyr Sports Complex.

''This is a total transformation,'' Denger said of an Eagles team that had an up-and-down regular season. ''We've come together as a team and done things together outside of practice. We've worked hard in practice and it paid off.''

Nazareth (15-6) plays the District 3 sixth seed (Red Land or Mechanicsburg) at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the first round of the state playoffs.

Parkland (19-3-1), which won both regular-season meetings with Nazareth, plays District One runner-up Central Rock South in the first round of the state playoffs Wednesday at a site and time to be announced.

''You don't play a team three times in one year because they are a pushover,'' Trojans coach Al Haddad said. ''[The Eagles] are a strong team.

''The first 25 minutes, [the Eagles] weathered the storm. You could see then that they gained confidence. We had a chance while they were a little skittish, but just couldn't put the ball in the back of the net.''

After Parkland controlled play early on with its patented ground passing game, Nazareth slowly got the pace at its level and neutralized the dangerous Tara Huber for most of the night.

As the second half wore on, the Eagles controlled the ball for longer stretches, even with just one forward back and putting an emphasis on clamping down the Trojans' explosive offense.

Nazareth's big chance came when Denger intercepted the ball just before midfield after a ricochet and outraced several Parkland defenders down the field.

But Denger let her speed and foot skills take over the moment. Once inside the box, she put a strong kick on it and Parkland goalie Julia Hulbert never had a chance.

The Trojans pressed on harder as the clock wound down, but never could get a golden opportunity to break the Eagles' defense (including Alex Capecci, Ashley La Bar, Erika Livermore and goalkeeper Brianne Henry), which was very solid all night.

''The big difference between the 12-6 team in the regular season and the district championship team is that [the coaches] always believed in the girls,'' Nazareth head coach Conor Fry said. ''They had to believe in themselves and believe in the team. I knew they had it in them all along.''

Central Catholic 2, Saucon Valley 0: Dominique Caggiano has had a great view of the Vikettes' run back to the district playoffs this season.

She hated every minute of it.

The junior, a starter a year ago, was injured in the first regular-season game of 2010 and didn't return until the district tournament.

As painful as it was, it ended up being worth the wait.

Caggiano scored for the second game in a row, breaking a scoreless tie at the 36:16 mark of the second half of Friday's district final, an eventual 2-0 win over Saucon Valley at Whitehall's Zephyr Sports Complex.

She chased down her own rebound after Saucon goalie Kelly Shoenberger jumped to save the original shot. The Central Catholic forward then booted it into the net for all the scoring the Vikettes would need.

''Against Northwestern Lehigh, a girl went for a slide tackle and kicked me instead of the ball,'' Caggiano recalled. ''I had a partial tear in my calf. At first, the doctor said I was going to miss the whole season. But I was able to get back about two weeks ago.

''It was great just to practice again.''

Caggiano scored her first goal of the season to tie Tuesday's district semifinal against Northwestern. Central eventually won 3-2 in overtime.

Lauren Kreglow and Casey Hollawell teamed on a corner kick for the second time in two games during Friday's final. This time, it was an insurance goal at 21:36 of the second half.

In Tuesday's semifinal, it was the game winner in overtime.

The district title was Central's second in a row after losing in the 2008 final.

Central Catholic plays the District 3 eighth seed (Middletown/ELCO loser) in the first round of the state playoffs Wednesday at a site and time to be announced. Saucon Valley takes on the District 3 fourth seed Lancaster Mennonite loser, also Wednesday.

Southern Lehigh 2, Northwestern Lehigh 1, OT: Courtney Long scored a goal less than a minute into the game and then assisted on Emily Cerciello's game winner with 26 seconds left in overtime to give the Spartans the third and final state playoff berth with a 2-1 win over the Tigers on Friday at Whitehall's Zephyr Sports Complex.

Cassie Yost tied the game at the 28:40 mark of the second half for Northwestern Lehigh (18-5), which played without injured leading scorer Katie Hallingstad.

About seven minutes earlier, Long had a breakaway chance for Southern Lehigh (19-2-1), but Chelsea Ritter made a great right-leg kick save to keep it 1-0.

Southern Lehigh plays the District 3 champion Trinity on Wednesday at a site and time to be announced. Northwestern's season ends at 18-5.

ALLENTOWN -- A commemoration to remember the Pennsylvania military members who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001 will be held from dawn to dusk Monday at Cedar Beach Park (behind Cedar Pool), Hamilton and South Ott streets. Co-sponsored by Lehigh-Pocono Committee of Concern (LEPOCO) and Lehigh Valley Veterans for Peace. Information: 610-691-8730.

ALLENTOWN -- Visitors to the Liberty Bell Shrine Museum at historic Zion’s Reformed Church, 622 W. Hamilton St., will be able to talk with a Revolutionary War soldier, noon to 4 p.m. Monday. Portrayed by Museum Curator Joshua Fink, Revolutionary War Soldier Joseph Plumb Martin will come to life and share some of his experiences as a soldier.

BANGOR -- A ceremony honoring those who have died in service to their country will begin at 10 a.m. in St. John’s Cemetery at 4th Street and Broadway. The American Legion’s parade will kick off immediately following the ceremony and move downtown to Founder’s Park. The honored guest will be the unknown soldier represented by a riderless horse named Tee provided by Saddlebrook Farm in Lower Mt. Bethel Township. The parade will be led by Tee, escorted by retired Command Sgt. Maj. Mark Baylis who recently returned from the Middle East war zone. The Bangor Area High School Marching Band, children from local Scout programs and Sea Cadets, fire engines and a 30-foot by 50-foot garrison flag will be featured. A luncheon will follow at the American Legion. Information: 610-435-4232 or libertybellmuseum.orgBELVIDERE -- The Belvidere American Legion Post No. 131 will host a parade Monday. The parade will form in front of 122 Greenwich St. at 8:30 a.m. and will begin at 9 a.m. A ceremony will be held at the Belvidere Cemetery on Oxford Street at 9:30 a.m. honoring all veterans who have died in the past year. BETHLEHEM -- United Veterans of Bethlehem, Harry F. W. Johnson Post # 379 and the City of Bethlehem will co-host the city’s Memorial Day parade and service beginning at 9 a.m. Monday in front of Liberty High School, 1115 Linden St. Parade route ends approximately 10 a.m. at the American Legion flagpole in Memorial Park Cemetery. Guest speaker will be Frank Ginther, Navy Veteran, U.S.S. Pueblo POW, Station Manager WJCS. Information: 610-866-3835.

BLAIRSTOWN TWP. -- American Legion Post 258 on Sunday will sponsor the 65th annual Memorial Day Parade in Blairstown. Services are scheduled at noon in Cedar Ridge Cemetery on Route 94 with the parade following immediately thereafter.EASTON -- The 53rd annual Veterans Memorial Day Council of the Easton Area parade starts 9:30 a.m. Monday at Jackson and Seventh streets. The parade will make its way to a service at Scott Park. Mayors from Easton and Phillipsburg will meet on the free bridge, where they will drop a memorial wreath into the water. Finally, the program will wrap up at Centre Square, Third and Northampton streets, Easton. In the event of rain, the program will start 11 a.m. at the Governor Wolf Building, 45 N. Second St., Easton.EASTON -- The South Side Civic Association and Rice Ebner American Legion Auxiliary will hold a service at 1 p.m. Monday at McKeen Park, Reynolds and Berwick Sts.GLEN GARDNER -- Glen Gardner VFW Memorial Post 5119, 179 Main St., is holding a Memorial Day ceremony and awards program for three $1,000 scholarship winners at 10 a.m. Monday. Cake and coffee will be served afterward. All are welcome.HANOVER TWP. -- State Rep. Julie Harhart will be the keynote speaker at the Memorial Day Service Monday at Cedar Hill Memorial Park, Airport Road. Congressman Charles Dent, State Sen. Pat Browne and State Rep. Jennifer Mann will also be in attendance along with Lehigh County Executive Don Cunningham and Northampton County Executive John Stoffa. This annual service at the cemetery begins at 11:45 a.m. Refreshments will be served in the Chapel of Memories Mausoleum following the ceremony and all families of veterans, past and present, and the general public are invited. Information: 610-437-5534.

HELLERTOWN -- American Legion Post 397 will hold its Memorial Day event 1:30 p.m. Sunday at Union Cemetery, 85-89 Main St. Guest Speaker is state Rep. Robert Freeman, D-Northampton. Information: 610-759-9900

NAZARETH -- The American Legion is sponsoring a parade and services to honor veterans and military service members. The parade begins at 10 a.m. Monday in Center Square, travel on South Main Street then onto Prospect Street to South Broad Street. The route turns north on South Broad Street and back to Center Square, then onto South Main again to Mauch Chunk Street and ends at Memorial Square next to Borough Hall where Judge Edward Smith will be the keynote speaker for formal services. Smith is a Navy veteran. The parade will pause at the Nazareth VFW for a bugler to play taps. Pictures drawn by local children will be on display and will be sent to troops serving overseas after Memorial Day celebrations.

PHILLIPSBURG -- American Legion Bernardine-May Post No. 457 is holding Memorial Day services at 9:30 a.m. Monday at Shappell Park, South Main and Sitgreaves streets. Participants are slated to gather on Abbott Street between Sitgreaves and South Main streets and start a procession at 9 a.m. sharp. The keynote speaker is Iraq veteran Tyler Loudenberry, with patriotic musical selections from Patti Lutz, Charlie Bowlby and the Phillipsburg High School marching band. After the service, the procession heads north on South Main Street for a wreath-drop and flyover about 10:45 a.m. on the free bridge with Easton veterans and officials. Click here to find a list of Memorial Day road closures.

RIEGELSVILLE -- The American Legion Post 950 will host a parade 1 p.m. Sunday beginning at the Riegelsville Fire House. The parade travels Easton Road to West on Elmwood Lane to the cemetery with stops and events at the river bridge, the World War I monument and the cemetery. Refreshments will be served after at the legion home, 220 Ash Lane. In the event of rain, a service will be held 1 p.m. at St. Lawrence Catholic Church.

ROSETO -- In observance of Memorial Day, members of the Martocci-Capobianco American Legion Post No. 750 in Roseto will depart from the post home at 8:30 a.m. Monday and proceed to the New Catholic Cemetery, where services will be held at 9 a.m. The contingent will move to the Roseto Presbyterian Cemetery on Liberty Street for services at 9:30 a.m. The final graveside services will be held at the Catholic cemetery adjacent to Our Lady of Mt Carmel church at 10 a.m. From this cemetery the legionnaires will proceed to the Municipal Plaza on Garibaldi Ave for the Community Services at the War Monuments beginning at 10:45 a.m. In the event of inclement weather, the community services will be held indoors at the Post Home at 143 Garibaldi Ave.

STEWARTSVILLE -- American Legion Post 456 will hold its Memorial Day parade beginning 10 a.m. Monday at Willever Way. The parade will travel on Main Street to Greenwich Street. Post Commander Craig Steible invites all to attend. Guest speaker will be Joey Becker from the American Legion in Alpha.

WASHINGTON TWP., N.J. -- The township will host their annual Memorial Day ceremony 2 p.m. Saturday at Rock Spring Park, off East Springtown Road, at the War Memorial site. The park will be closed to all other activities on this day. Information: 908-876-5941

WEST BANGOR -- The borough Memorial Association will hold its Memorial Day program 11 a.m. Monday at the memorial site on Second Street. The principal speaker will be Michael Scarsella, commander of the Pen Argyl American Legion Post. In case of inclement weather, the event will be held at St. Joseph’s Episcopal Church Social Hall, 1440 Verona Ave.

WEST EASTON -- The borough will hold its annual Memorial Day program 9 a.m. Monday at Seventh and Center streets, adjacent to borough hall. The event will be held rain or shine.

WILLIAMS TWP. -- Residents will hold a Memorial Day ceremony 6 p.m. Sunday at the municipal building, 655 Cider Press Road. Judge Craig Dally, Court of Common Pleas of Northampton County, will deliver the address. Roy Fox, one of the township’s most senior veterans, will lay a wreath at the base of the memorial to the township’s Fallen Heroes. Nancy Ackerman, Raubsville, Veterans Memorial Committee member, will be master of ceremonies. Community Service Recognition Awards will be presented to Timothy Koplin, chief mason in the building of the township memorial and Joe MacIntosh, proprietor of Country Lawnscape, which provided landscaping plants for the site. The awards will be made by Helen Seifert, Gold Star Mother and Williams Twp. Veterans Memorial Committee member. Information: 610-253-2489 or 610-253-8951

WIND GAP -- American Legion Post 724, 217 North Broadway, will commemorate Memorial Day with Pastor C. Frank Terhune and the congregation at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 1422 Church Road, Plainfield Township, 11 a.m. Sunday. At 1 p.m., a program will be held at the World War II Monument at Route 512 and Lehigh Street with music by the Blue Eagle Alumni Drum and Bugle Corp. Guest speaker is Hon. Craig A. Dally, judge of the Court of Common Pleas of Northampton County. Immediately following, the gathering will proceed to the monument in front of Post 724 on North Broadway.

While just Easton, Emmaus and Nazareth are left from the Lehigh Valley Conference after Stroudsburg blanked Liberty on Friday, a whopping six Colonial League teams still remain in the District 11 softball tournament,

That's half the league and remember, three league members had to be eliminated because they were playing another league foe.

That's impressive for the league, which has three of the four teams left in both the 2A and 3A brackets.

Perhaps Schuylkill League members Pine Grove and Pottsville are still the teams to beat in 2A and 3A respectively, but the Colonial League has to feel good about itself.

Southern Lehigh became the last Colonial member to advance to Tuesday's semis.

Here's a little report from the Spartans' win over Northwestern in a game that took two days to complete:

***************

A change in day didn’t change the scoreboard for the Southern Lehigh and Northwestern softball teams.

On Thursday, the District 11 Class 3A quarterfinal in Center Valley was delayed, and eventually suspended, due to bad weather conditions.

When they left off in the fourth inning, the Spartans led 7-4.When they resumed on Friday neither side could score, leaving Southern Lehigh with a 7-4 victory and a date in Tuesday’s 3A semis.

The third-seeded Spartans (15-7) will play No. 2 seed Pottsville (16-5) at a time and site (likely Parkland or Pates Park) to be selected.

Northwestern finished 11-10.

Katie Tankred tamed the Tigers with a four-hitter that included five strikeouts and just one walk. All four Northwestern runs were unearned.

The Spartans offense was sparked by catcher Shelby Wilson who was 3-for-3 with three runs scored and a two-run double in a four-run fourth.

Jen Hallowell added two hits and knocked in three runs for the winners.

“We have been hitting the ball very well and Tankred does a good job to keep us in the game,” said Solehi coach Brian Neefe. “It’s just a matter of us playing solid defense. Everybody has good and bad days, but if we’re ‘on’ there’s nobody in our district class that we can’t beat.”

Eight baseball players at Lehigh Valley high schools will slug it out June 5 at Coca-Cola Park for a chance to compete in the 2010 Triple-A Home Run Derby.

They will try to qualify after the Lehigh Valley IronPigs' 6:35 p.m. game against the Charlotte Knights. The two players with the most points will compete with six Triple-A players in the home run derby July 12 that's part of the Triple-A All-Star week festivities.

During a qualifying derby May 23 that narrowed the field from 22 to eight, Adam Wehr of Northwestern Lehigh High School earned the highest total of 20 points.

Here's how the scoring will work next weekend: each batter who hits the ball off the wall or onto the warning trick will get three points. Home runs are worth five points.

Received this note from a reader who is on the board of the Guild and lives in Nazareth, plus the event benefits Angel 34, which is a great organization located in Bushkill, so here is the information (sorry couldn’t post the attachment so follow up with the folks by email and I’m sure they will send you one):

From Points East & West – (via RT 22) Take Rt 33 South to Wm Penn Exit

From Points North – Use Rt 33 South to Wm Penn Exit

From Points South – Take I-78 to Rt 33 North to Wm Penn Exit

All Routes: East on Wm Penn Highway approx 0.9 miles to Bethman Rd. Left on Bethman Rd. approx 1.8 miles to stop sign. (Center is visible from Bethman Rd) Turn right onto Green Pond Rd. to Charles Chrin Community Center.

A portion of the proceeds will benefit Angel 34 -

Making a difference in the fight against childhood cancer

www.angel34.org

For More Information:

Call Nancy at 610-365-8428 or email Nancy_Finn@msn.net

Call Suzanne at 610-759-7779 or email suzboy@verizon.net

OR visit our Website at www.colonialquilters.org

Please forward this email and attached coupon to all your friends and family! Thank you for helping us make this quilt show a success!

Earlier this week I predicted Nicole Scherzinger would win Dancing With the Stars and Lee DeWyze would win American Idol.

Ok, so far, so good.

I also could have predicted an embarrassing season finale for American Idol in which they went overboard in saying good-bye to Simon Cowell, particularly with the predictably loopy, bizarre, hard-to-watch return of Paula Abdul who is still obviously heavily medicated.

If they wanted to pay tribute to him, they should have simply replayed the clip in which he predicted Carrie Underwood (pictured below), the only Idol winner I'd ever pay to see, would sell more records than anybody else in the show's history.

It was his best moment as far as I'm concerned and showed he knew what he was talking about.

As for the rest of the show, it was like going to my 30th high school reunion last fall. I saw a lot of familiar faces and heard a lot of familiar voices from the late 1970s -- Chicago, Hall & Oates, Alice Cooper, the Bee Gees, Joe Cocker, and Michael McDonald of Doobie Brothers fame etc. But no one looked quite as good or sounded quite as good as they used to.

Speaking of things not being as good as they used to be, the pitching and defense in area softball hasn't been as good as it used to be this year and that was never made more evident than in the wild 15-14 game I witnessed today at Saucon Valley. The Panthers won the 3A quarterfinal over Becahi in a game called at 7:55 p.m. with lightning flashing and darkness closing.

It has been that way all year with the struggling pitching and defense, but I still never thought I'd see a 15-14 District 11 playoff game between two of the better teams in area softball.

An unforgiving strike zone and several close calls at first base that went the offense's way, plus the distruption and distraction of several lengthy weather delays, didn't help the pitchers and the defenses either. I had the feeling that if the seventh inning had played out, one of the teams might have reached 20.

Still, this one I'll never forget and not necessarily for all of the right reasons.

I felt bad for Becahi because the Golden Hawks had led most of the way. They fell behind just once, but at precisely the wrong time. And yet, they had four different 4-run leads and still couldn't hold on.

It was just a bizarre, crazy game that may have provided some poetic justice for Saucon. Many have felt along -- and I wouldn't argue -- that the Panthers were the best team in the Colonial League this season and a late slump and some tiebreakers conspired to keep them out of the league tournament.

But now they are in the district's final four and have their chance on the big stage.

As for the rest of what happened:

4A -- Emmaus and Easton, two of the hottest teams in the area until they got bumped off in the LVC semis last week, bounced back with big wins. Emmaus gets Nazareth again, and Sarah Faust looks like she's finally hitting her stride. A no-hitter against Northampton is impressive. Meanwhile Easton awaits the winner of Liberty-Stroudsburg, which was postponed until today. It would not shock me if we had a repeat of the LVC finals (Nazareth vs. Liberty) in the district final.

3A -- Palisades got a gem from Krista Morrone in what must have been a classic pitchers' duel with Wilson's Chelsea Bock. Now the Pirates get Saucon again, a team they have beaten twice. Pottsville, though, may be the best team in the entire classification. The Crimson Tide awaits the winner of the Southern Lehigh-Northwestern game. The Spartans lead that one 7-4 with play set to resume today in the fourth inning.

2A -- It was the power of the "P" in this class as Pine Grove, Pen Argyl and Palmerton won games along with Colonial League champ Northern Lehigh. Pine Grove and Pen Argyl will meet in Tuesday's semis in a rematch of last year's district final won by the Cardinals. And the Northern Lehigh-Palmerton rivalry is rekindled in the other semifinal. The Blue Bombers haven't won a district title since 1989 and you know they would like to cement their return to legitimacy as a softball program by beating their neighbors from Slatington.

Some good games are coming, but I need a day or two to allow my brain unscramble from that 15-14 doozy I just witnessed.

Thursday, June 03, 2010All Times ET--------------------------------------------------------------------------------2:00AM Illinois Campus Programming: Laurie Morvan Blues Band: Back at Illinois 2:30AM Illinois Campus Programming: Innovations (HD) 3:00AM Purdue Campus Programming: Boiler Bytes 10 (HD) 3:30AM Purdue Campus Programming: Boiler Bytes 2 (HD) 4:00AM Northwestern Campus Programming: The Making of Waa-Mu 2009 (HD) 5:00AM Fighting Illini Insider '09-'10 5:30AM Big Ten Men's Golf '09: Big Ten Championship (HD)Big Ten golf events. 6:30AM Illinois Basketball: A Night of Legends (HD)Former Illinois Fighting Illini basketball greats reunite for an alumni game at Assembly Hall. 8:00AM The Big Ten's Greatest Games - Basketball: 3/5/89 - Illinois at Indiana 10:00AM The Big Ten's Greatest Games - Football: 1999 - Illinois at MichiganThe Illini are a 24 point underdog at #9 Wolverines. Trailing 27-7 in the 3rd, Kurt Kittner rallies Illinois to four touchdowns and a 35-29 lead. The victory is clinched when Illinois picks off a Tom Brady pass. 1:00PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 2:00PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 2:30PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 3:00PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 3:30PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 4:00PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 4:30PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 5:00PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 5:30PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 6:00PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 6:30PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 7:00PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 7:30PM Illinois Football: The Journey (HD)Illinois Football: The Journey will go deep inside the Fighting Illini program all year, capturing the team's activities on the field and beyond. The series will introduce fans to the Illini players, coaches and support staff while traveling on road tripsand will capture practices, team meetings, film sessions, pre-game walkthroughs and many of Zook's pre-game, halftime and post-game locker room speeches. 8:00PM The Big Ten's Best: Running Backs of the 80s (HD) – Debut 8:30PM Big Ten Film Vault: 1958 Football Yearbook – Debut 9:00PM The Big Ten's Greatest Games - Football: 1991 - East Carolina at IllinoisFighting Illini quarterback Jason Verduzco passed for 352 yards and three touchdowns as Illinois handed Jeff Blake and East Carolina their only loss of the season. 11:00PM Big Ten Men's Golf '10: Big Ten Championships